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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cell · bowl · drill · net · tube · pop · pound · temple

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. tube — a container
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. pop — to visit
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. net — for catching
  9. tube — the underground
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. cell — in biology
  12. drill — army training
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. net — after costs
  18. pop — music
  19. drill — a practice
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pop — soda
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. drill — the tool
  24. net — in sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com